'Don't Dress for Dinner' kicks off Footlight Players' 83rd season

By Olivia Pool Special to The Post and Courier

The Footlight Players, the longest-producing theater company in the state, is opening its 83rd season with the sexy and funny play "Don't Dress for Dinner."

Melonea Marek of the Footlight Players gives us a brief synopsis: "In 'Don't Dress for Dinner,' Bernard's plans for a romantic rendezvous with his chic Parisian mistress are complete with a gourmet caterer and an alibi courtesy of his friend, Robert. But when Bernard's wife learns that Robert will be visiting for the weekend, she decides to stay in town for a surprise tryst of her own, setting the stage for a collision course of mistaken identities and outrageous infidelities, with more twists than a corkscrew. The cook is Suzette, the lover is Suzanne, the friend is bewildered, the wife is suspicious, the husband is losing his mind."

Originally written by Marc Camoletti and adapted by Robin Hawdon, this Charleston performance is directed by Jo Ellen Aspinwall.

Show dates for "Don't Dress for Dinner" start Friday and run through Aug. 17.

The Footlight Players Theatre is at 20 Queen St. Tickets are $30 for adults, $27 for military persons and seniors, and $20 for students, and can be purchased by calling 722-4487 or online at www.footlightplayers.net.

N. Charleston exhibits

Throughout the month of August, check out the concurrent solo exhibits by Georgia-based artists Jessica Burke and Michael Ellison at the North Charleston City Gallery.

Burke's collection of drawings is called "(Re)Play." Her works are mostly graphite portraits and other drawings that focus on pop culture figures and the influence they had on others.

"Each piece features one of the artist's friends, co-workers or students dressed in costume, assuming the identity of a fictional character from pop culture that was particularly influential during their formative years. The characters range from ... Cinderella and Superman to Darth Vader and Joan Crawford a la 'Mommie Dearest.' Burke's love/hate relationship with popular culture is at the root of this exploration and has served as the inspiration for many of her series," explains city of North Charleston Arts Coordinator Ann Simmons.

Ellison's color photography collection called "Every Day Sightings" is of various places in Savannah. Although the subject matter is beautiful, his main focus is in the lighting and composition of the subjects.

"These images document the world as I see it in all of its quirkiness," Ellison says. "One of my goals is to challenge the viewer to appreciate the details in life by presenting the image of the world in a straightforward manner."

Ellison grew up in Charlotte, and he got his first camera (a 35mm) during a combat tour in Vietnam. He has been photographing since and his works have been featured in numerous exhibitions throughout the country and is also part of the permanent collection at the Telfair/Jepson Art Museum in Savannah.

Both of these exhibits will be on display throughout August at the North Charleston City Gallery, in the common areas of the Charleston Area Convention Center, 5001 Coliseum Drive in North Charleston. The gallery is open daily. Call 740-5854 or go to www.northcharleston.org.

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Enlarge The Footlight Players will opening its 83rd season with “Don’t Dress for Dinner.” Provided

The Footlight Players will opening its 83rd season with “Don’t Dress for Dinner.”

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